W is for Write-Up (SCHISM Book Release)

I realize that today's doesn't exactly match the designated letter...in fact I had to work really hard to come up with something that came close...but the fact is I committed to interviewing a friend, who is one of my critique partners and a fellow blogger, on this date long before I knew I was going to participate in A-Z. Why is this day so special...well, take a look at the banner below and you'll understand.

Author Interview

What inspired you to become an author?

I’ve always
been drawn to stories and to making up my own or acting them out with my
stuffed animals. As for actually writing them down, I blame my parents for
naming me after an author—Laura Ingalls Wilder. It’s like being named after an author
gave me this bug in my ear. I would write lots of short stories or beginnings
of novels, and after enough “starts” I finally began to finish them.

How did you come up with the idea for
your book?

I was in college and watching a lot of
anime at the time. I’ve always liked the “magical girl” shows where a normal
girl is transported to another world. I took that key idea and tried to warp
it, to find a different angle. So, I came up with the fourth-spatial dimension
for my world Illirin. From there I created Gabe and Lea, and all of the
conflicts rose organically from a combination of the setting and their personal
goals/problems.

Tell us about your main character.

Gabriel
Jones (Gabe) is the primary character, although Lea is a main character too. In
the beginning, He’d think not much to say because he’s lost his memory. In
fact, he’s obsessive about trying to recover it. The funny thing is that his
true personality shows through regardless of remembering his past. He’s got a
kind heart, he’s passionate, he wears his heart on his sleeve, and he’s got a
real impulsive streak. His passion has a bad side though, and he’s quick to
anger. He’s basically a recipe for conflict.

What are you currently working on?

I’m working
on the sequel to SCHISM called UNITY as well as a short novelette prequel. I’m
also drafting a geeky YA romance that has lots of awkward nerd love in it. I
can’t wait to share all these projects!

Art therapy hasn’t done squat for Gabe
Jones. A thousand sketches of his fiancée can’t bring his memory, or her, back
to him. Nothing on Earth can. His past lies in another dimension, a world just
out of sight.

Another
student on campus, Lea Huckley, unknowingly shares Gabe’s obsession with the
fourth dimension. The monsters from the other side attacked her parents and
fled, getting her folks locked up in the loony bin. Proving this other world
exists is the only way to free them. Lea and Gabe strike a deal to help each
other, and together they manage to open a door to the world of Gabe’s true
origin. She’d use him for proof—if she didn’t already care too much.

While Gabe tries to reconcile his feelings for
Lea and his rediscovered memories of his fiancée, a much more sinister plot
unravels. He uncovers his history just in time to become the unwilling lynchpin
in a conspiracy to start a war. His memory holds the secret to the final riddle
the would-be conqueror needs to get the upper hand. Gabe must protect the
riddle at all costs, even if that means leaving Earth, and Lea, behind forever.

Lea
packed light. Other than her phone’s GPS and a flashlight, she kept a small
notepad, her lucky pencil, and the thermometer in her cargo pocket. She didn’t
need to find data, now she needed proof.

She led
the way down the alley where skyscrapers blocked the glowing moon and the lamps
from the highway. Yellowed fixtures above each back entrance threw faint cones
of light onto the cement, like holes in Swiss cheese.

Lea
checked the coordinates on her phone while she walked, and the little red arrow
crept closer to the flag icon she placed to mark the interaction point.

Gabe
spent his time surveying the area for anything that might be a danger. He kept
fidgeting behind her and turning around every few seconds, a twitchy meerkat on
patrol.

“We’re
only between buildings. It’s not the end of the world.” Lea checked her phone
again to make sure they were headed in the right direction.

He
glanced over his shoulder. “I still don’t like it. It’s night, people do get
mugged, you know.”

“The
statistics of that are so low. We’re really not in any danger, considering the
population and how many times that sorta thing happens.”

He
shifted uneasily behind her. “Whatever, we’re raising the chances by being out
here at night.”

Lea
rolled her eyes. “I’m not missing this opportunity.”

“I know
that. Neither am I.”

“Good.”

They
came to a cross section behind two major offices where the loading docks and
dumpsters sat for both of them. A stream of water trickled down the concave
cement into the large sewer grate. Old garbage left a fume hanging around, and
the humidity only made it worse.

Lea
double- and triple-checked her coordinates, cross-checking with her notes.
“This is it. Within I’d say, a fifteen foot diameter, low to the ground.” She
shoved the phone in her cargo pocket. “Perfect.”

“How
long?”

“Roughly
ten minutes.”

Ten
minutes may as well have been six hours. She paced back and forth, her sneakers
scuffing the gritty pavement.

Gabe
continued to keep a watchful eye out for muggers or vagrants. What a dork.

She
snickered quietly. For someone who didn’t know his own experiences, he sure
seemed paranoid. She watched him standing straight, darting his eyes to the
entrance and even up to the windows above them. Watch out bad guys, Gabe’s on
to you. She smiled and turned to see what looked like heat waves rising from
the cold cement. Crap. The interaction had already started.

“Gabe…”
She waved him over next to the loading dock.

This
interaction provided no shining lights or obvious movement. Not much stood out
visually, except maybe the air glistening like summer heat waves if she
squinted hard enough, but her digital thermometer found the coldest point.

“Here,”
she whispered, not wanting anyone or anything on the other side to hear. She
stretched her arms forward, and Gabe did likewise.

“On the
count of three.” She waited for him to nod. “One…two…three.”

They both reachedthroughthe interaction point and grabbed at
the thicker air. Nothing. They tried again, pulling, grasping, and making any
sort of motion to trigger a rip. Finally, Gabe leaned in and pulled out at just
the right angle, because the light tore across like a jagged line. Lea grabbed
the edge of it and tugged, opening the tear wider until they both fell through.

About the Author

Laura has an MA in
Technical writing and is a Senior Editor at Anaiah Press for their YA/NA
Christian Fiction. She’s
excited to release her debut YA Urban Fantasy SCHISM, and she’s finishing up
the sequel UNITY.

Her
gamer husband and amazing daughter give support and inspiration every day.
Their cats, Talyn and Moya, provide entertainment through living room battles
and phantom-dust-mote hunting. Somehow, they all manage to survive living in
Texas where it is hotter than any human being should have to endure. Check out her blog at
LauraMaisano.blogspot.com.